Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1887-09-16
ON THE GRAND CANAL.
rhe Charms That Venice Holds for the Ee-
Elective American Tourist,

'nout three miles from shore. The
1vel's from the mountains brought
Town sand and soil and carried il into
he Adriatic. and, of course. dropped
t. in time forming low, sand islands.
The city was thickly populate, in the
Inc of the Roman occupancy. When
the Cloths came down. the Romans. or
some of them at least, fled to these
islands. The books say that for some
time they lived in little matched houses
ana were forced, in some measure. to
become sailors. They early became
Christians. so that when the English
and French crusaders were on their
way to the Holy Land they came and
went by this way, as it wa, directly on
the route. Then Venice became \
maritime city and grew rapidly in
wealth and population. The people
early formed kind of republic and
fostered education, and therefore grew
in influence, and the city was called
the Queen of the Sea- The rich
merchants could not buy farms. TO.
there was no land, and so they took 10
building palaces. The lower rooms
We're used for business. the upper for
residences. The soil being sand they
had to drive piling for foundations.
Their trade being maritime wholly and
water plenty, they made all the prin-
cipal streets Waterways. so that now
there is not u horse nor a mule in the
city. The land streets are from four
to twelve feet wide, while the Grand
Canal is wide enough to float
Great Eastern. The palaces
were built of brick and marble.
and three centuries ago, must be-
lieve, the Grand Cana! was the
handsomest street then in the world.
But Columbus or NeSpucius. or some
body. discovered America and the CRU
saders quit going To Jerusalem TO rob
the Turks and bring back the plumber
To Venice for sale. Again. it was found
that ships could sail 10 India around
the south of Africa, and Venice was
doomed. Ceasing To make money, all
her people turned TO be politicians, and
in time the city lost its colonies, its
wealth, its influence Napoleon took
IL and gave it 10 Austria in a bio trade,
and finally it came to be II part of Italy.
Yes cr.ay we rode up and down the
Grand Canal in gondola. They are
all black and precisely alike. Some
three hundred and fifty years ago the
rich made their gOndolas So ornate and
'umptuous that the plain people took
he matter in hand and made a law
king the size and forbdding all other
form of craft. This morning we went
over TO what is called the Piazza. or
Great Square. 1t is about two acres in
size. On two sides are marble build
ngS On the third side is the palace
Napoleon !. built for the King of Italy.
On the other side is the Church of st.
Mark. In s25, they say, the bones of
the apostle were brought here. The
church Is Il magnificent temple. 1t is
IN the form of Greek cross with five
lomcs. There are nearly two acres of
Mosaics about the church inside and out,
worked into all kinds of pictures. The
iioor is laid in marble and there are
live hundred and forty marble columns
nscd in the construction of the build
me-. These were brought from the
East. The story is that each ship was
required rs Il tax to pay Il column for
the right To enter port. Some are
white. some red and some green. They
were formerly in temples in Asia and
Africa. 1t took more than hundred
years to complete the church, and it
looks like the pictures of Asiatic tenn
pies. 1t is claimed that the architects
were from Greece or Constantinople,
but nobody now knows who they were.
When we got to the church the Jam
was so great we failed to get in, but a
half frame opened a door To stairway
which led up to Il kind of balcony or
private box, from where we could look
down on priests and people. A Car
dinal dressed in a red cap and beauti-
full robes read u sermon in Il splendid
voice while sitting in Il red velvet and
gilded chair. The congregation stood
up, as there are no seats. AT the side
altar many said their prayers and went
away. Here and there some were
knecling, and throngs were coming
and going all the while. In the after
noon the pigeons We're fed in the
square hundreds of them there are,
and tame enough Ia sit on your arm
md eat. Once il was said q pigeon
(they call Them doves) rendered the
State 4 great service. and thereafter
they were taken under the protection
If the State: but now they are fed by
| IN insurance company and by every
visitor. Cor. Indianapolis .Scntinei
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